On a quiet residential street in an upscale west-side Vancouver neighbourhood, a van painted in blaring red and white colours sits parked with the back open. Inside, a man in coveralls works on a bicycle mounted on a stand.

The van’s walls are lined with tools, bolts, screws and assorted paraphernalia used to fix and tune up bikes. Every inch of space is occupied.

Like big incongruous pieces in an intricate puzzle of tiny parts, there is an espresso coffee machine on one side, a flatscreen television mounted near the top and skylights in the ceiling as a crowning touch.

A new fixture on city streets, Velofix is a mobile bicycle repair shop, a bicycle mechanic’s paradise on wheels that brings service to your doorstep rather than forcing you to go out and find it.

After rolling out just over a year ago in January of 2013, co-owners Boris Martin and Chris Guillemet say their mobile fix-it shop has been doing a booming business.

“Our first year revenue was about 70 per cent more than we had budgeted for,” said Guillemet.

While we were talking, their customer, Michael Ainsworth, emerged from a nearby house, taking a break from running his own company, to check on the progress of his bike.

The reason he uses their services is simple. “I don’t have to go anywhere.”

Besides the convenience, “I’ve taken my bike to other shops around town. It’s kind of hit and miss. You never know who is working on your bike.”

The business has taken off so dramatically that Martin, Guillemet and a third partner, Davide Xausa, are about to add a second van in the Lower Mainland in addition to one in Victoria launched in February, with retired Olympian triathlete Simon Whitfield owning the franchise there. Velofix has also opened in Toronto and is launching in Calgary this month.

With a tag line of “save time, ride more,” the business is a sign of our busy times.

“People are looking for something convenient,” said Guillemet.

He and Xausa learned this first-hand. “Davide and I both have other businesses and kids and we just found it a challenge to get our bikes serviced.”

Besides being spared trips to and from the bike shop, there is no downtime with your bike out of commission for days at the bike shop, an important consideration if you use it as a means of transport.

The partners say that everything you would find in a modern bicycle repair shop can be found in the van. They can service every kind of bike and can box bikes for going on the road.

With a basic tune-up starting at $69, their prices are in line with those charged by regular bike shops. They can afford to compete because they don’t have the overhead of a bike shop.

Martin, who works as the mechanic in the Vancouver van, was the mastermind behind the van’s layout design, which has been an exercise in seeking perfection. It copies patterns used by recreational vehicles and leisure water craft where life is compressed into a small space.

Fuelled by diesel, the interior of the Velofix van is powered by marine batteries that are removed after about 30 hours of run time and recharged. It’s more eco-friendly and much quieter than generators, says Martin, preventing noise complaints from neighbours.

The company’s initial challenge was exposure, but merely driving the van around town serves as a giant mobile billboard. They also offered free services at mega cycling events such as the GranFondo and Rides to Conquer Cancer and have done corporate days for companies such as Lululemon and HootSuite, which have a strong cycling culture.

There was initial skepticism that their van couldn’t fully service bicycles, but Guillemet said this was overcome by proving they could get the job done.

The company tries to make its services as convenient as possible, creating an online booking system accessible from computers or hand-held devices.

It offers one-stop shopping, sometimes servicing bikes for the entire family, sometimes gaining access to a garage with a door-opening code and then charging on-site or emailing the bill, creating a paperless company. In keeping with modern times, the van is equipped with wireless Internet.

It has a commercial parking permit, which means it can park in back-alley loading and passenger zones.

The partners are aware that they are not the only mobile bike service company in town, although, being one of the newest, they are a sign of a growth industry.

It helps, too, that the three partners are athletes, cycling enthusiasts and come from a strong business pedigree.

Martin, who has nine years of bike shop mechanical and management experience, is a three-time Canadian track champion. One of his jerseys is framed on the wall of the van.

Xausa is an ex-professional soccer player, having played with the Whitecaps, on the Canadian national team and in Scotland. He went on to become president of a real estate investment trust and senior manager of a renewable energy company.

Guillemet’s senior management experience includes growing a company to $90 million and a successful IPO, launching an Internet start-up that has raised $45 million, and financing and driving growth at a $30-billion consumer packaging food company.

He has competed in several Ironman triathlons and has run marathons, but at 42, he finds his body is starting to hurt more with high-impact exercise so he is increasingly switching to cycling. He loves the social aspect of it, heading out for two- or three-hour rides with friends.

“We all understand cycling and that is what has made it so fun for us,” said Guillemet. “When you are talking about something you are passionate about, it doesn’t feel like work.”

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